West Virginia Derby
The sun had just barely emerged above the tree line at Turfway Park when Ethan West was given a leg up onto his next galloper that morning. It was the usual late August affair--hot, humid, and deviating from the direct line of the nearest fan made it feel like one was walking through soup...or drowning in it. And yet, the barn moved to the beat of its own drum as everyone went through their usual paces. Emerging from the shedrow on the back of an eye-catching grey, West allowed the...
Juddmonte Farms' progressive Dragoon Guard (Arrogate), a neck away from being unbeaten in his young career, carries a three-race winning streak and should jump a slight favorite in Sunday's $500,000 GIII West Virginia Derby at Mountaineer Park. The homebred son of the talented turf mare Filimbi (Mizzen Mast) was beaten a neck by future stakes winner Otto the Conqueror (Street Sense) on his seven-furlong debut at Churchill last September, but is perfect since, including an all-the-way victory over GI Santa Anita Derby hero Stronghold (Ghostzapper) in the GIII Indiana Derby...
Sent off the third betting choice at just shy of 4-1, Red Route One (Gun Runner) sustained a run for the better part of the final five furlongs and shot past the dueling pacesetters to give his owner Winchell Thoroughbreds a third win and trainer Steve Asmussen a sixth success in the GIII West Virginia Derby. Outrun early, the homebred was third-last to make the first turn as Iowa Derby first-past-the-post One In Vermillion (Army Mule) and West Coast Cowboy (West Coast)--fifth in Altoona--eyeballed one another through honest splits. Red...
Already with a pair of Grade III victories in his rearview, JIL Stable's Mr. Wireless (Dialed In) will look to make it three in a row in Sunday night's GIII Oklahoma Derby at Remington. A debut fifth with a tough trip going six furlongs Mar. 4 at Fair Grounds, the gelding earned a pair of hard-fought nose successes Mar. 27 and May 1 at Oaklawn before finishing a close second at 14-1 in the sloppy-track Texas Derby May 31 at Lone Star. Cruising to a sharp 3 3/4-length score in...
Calumet Farm's Bourbonic (Bernardini), overmatched in two legs of the Triple Crown after scoring a Grade II upset this spring, will step a few rungs down the class ladder Saturday when invading Mountaineer Park for the track's signature race on the calendar, the GIII West Virginia Derby. Breaking his maiden by open lengths for a $50,000 tag Dec. 6 at Aqueduct, the homebred repeated in a starter/optional claiming spot there Jan. 17 and was runner-up in a sloppy Parx allowance/optional claimer Feb. 23. Ambitiously spotted by Todd Pletcher off that...
In a reversal from an earlier announcement, the Aug. 1 West Virginia Derby program at Mountaineer Park has been cancelled. Changes in West Virginia's COVID-19 policy and the logistics of shippers, both equine and human, prompted the change. The regular racing program, which had already been scheduled to be conducted without patrons, will not be affected.
The Week in Review, by T.D. Thornton Four-time Grade I-winning 4-year-old McKinzie (Street Sense) has always been saddled with high expectations, while 3-year-old Mr. Money (Goldencents) has now achieved millionaire status by grinding out four consecutive Grade III victories. Convincing wins on Saturday gave each horse a divisional foothold, with McKinzie establishing himself as the top two-turn older dirt horse who might finally be getting comfortable with kingpin status, and Mr. Money carving out a niche as the late-blooming sophomore who appears primed to punch above his weight thanks to...